Classifieds - We Are Live!

Posted by
wimg
,
07 May 2011
·
1,196 views

Dearest members of the Fountain Pen Nut house,We would like to announce that we are Live now with the new Classifieds Application. This will replace all but Market Watch in the Classifieds and Market Watch section of our board.Before anybody starts asking questions, let me try to provide some answers first, on the following topics .1) Manuals2) Handling of old sales forums post3) Images4) WTB forum5) Classifieds rules6) Classified renewals7) Contact with the advertiser of a particular classifiedSo here goes:1) ManualsWe have created three manuals so far, which you will find in this column, and which can be accessed from the Classifieds app as well. These are likely not all manuals we will create, but at least this will provide us with a flying start:Classifieds Manual, Part 1: Browsing ClassifiedsClassifieds Manual, Part 2: Create a ClassifiedClassifieds Manual, Part 3: The Question and Answer system2) Handling of old sales forums postsEffectively, from the moment Classifieds opened for business, the old Classifieds and Market Watch forums are no longer active as such, meaning, no new topics can be posted anymore in the Classifieds forums, but people can still reply to the remaining topics. Topics with no replies for more than 30 days in those forums will be closed, or no longer available for further replies. The exception is Market Watch, which now becomes a forum rather than a subforum, so this will be promoted to a level slightly higher up. This will continue to exist, IOW, in its old format.3) ImagesPlease do note: every single new classified requires the attachment of at least 1 image directly to the message. No image, no classified. Do read the manuals to find out how to do that if you are not familiar or comfortable with that. If you would like to test the facility, we have set up a Play Pen category for this specific purpose. In the Play Pen you can go absolutely wild, well, decency etc. rules still apply of course, with no further consequences.4) WTB forumThis is a special case: we will try, for the time being, how this will work with the Classifieds app, meaning that even here images have to be inserted. A post can be made a For Sale or a Wanted (to Buy) post by a simple radio button, but all classifieds require the upload of at least 1 image. Our suggestion is that if you don't have an image, to upload a (simple) drawing. If this does not work out, we may revert back to the old incarnation of the WTB forum(s). Unfortunately the expected fix for this will only be avialable after the next major upgrade of the board software, and we didn't want to wait that long.5) Classifieds rulesA new set of rules will be posted as soon as they are available. In the mean time, the old set of rules is still valid, with the exception of the 3 new ads per day option - there is no longer such a rule, it has been changed, see further below. See the manuals for more on this, as there are specific categories for High and Low Volume Sellers. Other than that, many of the old sales rules are incorporated in the classified creation itself, so in a way most are self explanatory.As an addition, as the rule for posting in either Low or High Vol. is difficult to find:Only hobbyists selling in order to change their own private collection are supposed to use the Low Vol. category, with a maximum of 3 classifieds per week and maximum 100 classifieds per year. Anybody else, who is selling for any other reasons, f.e., a professional or semi-professional from the world of fountain pens, or anybody who wants to place more than the limit of classifieds for the Low Vol. category, PLEASE be so kind to place classifieds in the High Vol. category!6) Classified renewalsIt is possible at the end of the period a classified runs, to renew that classified, which is an extremely simple procedure. This option exists for up to two weeks after the expiration date of the classified, and it can be renewed up to 5 times max. When we have time and reach the point ourselves when this can be done, we will likely create a manual for this part of the Classifieds app too.7) Contact with the advertiser of a particular classifiedTo contact an advertiser, you need to use email. That is made simple, as clicking on the "Contact Advertiser Directly" Button, just above the advertiser panel or profiel panel if you like, pops up an email window straight away, with the email address already supplied. We will likely write a manual on this part of the process too, but time has been a little too short to accomplish this and the other manuals and deal with the FPN Pen etc. :DIf you have any further questions, post them here as a comment, or even better, in the Members Helping Members forum, so we and other members may be able to help and/or learn from the experience.Warm regards, WimOn behalf of the Moderator and Admin Team

Yayyyy! I've been waiting anxiously for this update!However, I placed a new ad for pencils in the appropriate subforum and when I attached my two photos and published the post, a strange photo of pens also got uploaded that do not belong to me. I've tried going back and deleting the photo, but it says "Action Failed." What do I do, or can an Admin delete it for me?

Hey Mods, great job on the new forum!One question: the old classifieds system had a "mark forum as read" option, which seemed really useful as a way of tracking new comments, and quickly tracking chnages to a post. More importantly, it allowed you to quickly verify whether or not a post was an old one you'd already viewed, or whether you could skip a topic. It made scanning a really long forum quick and efficient.Does that feature still exist? I'm looking for it, but can't find it anywhere.Thanks for your ongoing efforts!D.

Is there provision for 'old sales posts'. This subforum of the now redundant sales board is a great reference for pricing and relative availability over a longer period of time etc.Nice job BTW - this new addition has many useful features that will improve further through a short snagging period I am sure thanksStephen

There actually is a currency indicator.The problem is that the currency indicator in the app itself is not multi-currency, and dependent on locale of the software installation. Considering we are a board with people from 190 countries, even if there are about 8 main currencies, we worked around that by a field in the advert itself, which indicates the currency. When creating a classified, you can select a currency from all the currencies in the world, with the main currency right at the top of the list.There will be an update for the currency at some stage, but we don't exactly know when yet. Considering the usefulness of this app, and the fact that the next release will only be available at the earliest several weeks after the new version of the board software (which is a major overhaul), we decided to go ahead with the new classifieds, warts and all. HTH, warm regards, Wim

Is there provision for 'old sales posts'. This subforum of the now redundant sales board is a great reference for pricing and relative availability over a longer period of time etc.Nice job BTW - this new addition has many useful features that will improve further through a short snagging period I am sure thanksStephen

Hi Stephen,Currently, there is no history beyond the month a classifed lasts, plu sany renewals. It will be added, however, in a future version. All classifieds are still there, just no longer visible.HTH, warm regards, Wim

Yayyyy! I've been waiting anxiously for this update!However, I placed a new ad for pencils in the appropriate subforum and when I attached my two photos and published the post, a strange photo of pens also got uploaded that do not belong to me. I've tried going back and deleting the photo, but it says "Action Failed." What do I do, or can an Admin delete it for me?

As indicated in PM, that is a small snag - I fixed it for you. We need to keep track of these things happening. A modrator or admin can easily fix this for you, so contact the sales moderators or the admins if you run into a problem like this. You can do that by clicking on the report button, or by contacting a moderator or admin directly. A report will be attended to more quickly, in most cases.HTH, warm regards, Wim

Hey Mods, great job on the new forum!One question: the old classifieds system had a "mark forum as read" option, which seemed really useful as a way of tracking new comments, and quickly tracking chnages to a post. More importantly, it allowed you to quickly verify whether or not a post was an old one you'd already viewed, or whether you could skip a topic. It made scanning a really long forum quick and efficient.Does that feature still exist? I'm looking for it, but can't find it anywhere.Thanks for your ongoing efforts!D.

Hi Dennis,No, there is no such option yet. However, once you have opened an advert, it will remember you have done so. It will also indicate there are new adverts in a category, which is entirely member based - no difference from the forums IOW. Furthermore you can subscribe to categories or to items, and you can also search classifieds.There is a request to the developer for having a "Mark all as read" button or link, but we don't know yet for when this is scheduled.Till that time, we will have to do without, I am afraid.HTH, warm regards, Wim

Wim, excellent work! I really like this new classifieds thing where you can see pictures of everything for sale at a glance.One small issue - if someone uploads a picture that is large (e.g. 4000x6000 as is typical from a modern multi-megapixel camera) then when you click the thumbnail to view it the photo doesn't resize so all you can see is the corner of the pic.

<strong class="bbc">4) WTB forum<br></strong>This is a special case: we will try, for the time being, how this will work with the Classifieds app, meaning that even here images have to be inserted. A post can be made a For Sale or a Wanted (to Buy) post by a simple radio button, but all classifieds require the upload of at least 1 image. Our suggestion is that if you don't have an image, to upload a (simple) drawing. If this does not work out, we may revert back to the old incarnation of the WTB forum(s). Unfortunately the expected fix for this will only be avialable after the next major upgrade of the board software, and we didn't want to wait that long.

<br>Perhaps I am missing something here. Unless the member already owns an image of the WTB item (unlikely), he should find one on the web he can "borrow" for purposes of meeting the "upload of at least 1 image" requirement? If not, then "a (simple) drawing" will do? Ha! My drawing skills aren't up to any sort of decent representation of any fountain pen that I would purchase. Can you imagine trying to draw a Krone? <br>

Wim, excellent work! I really like this new classifieds thing where you can see pictures of everything for sale at a glance.One small issue - if someone uploads a picture that is large (e.g. 4000x6000 as is typical from a modern multi-megapixel camera) then when you click the thumbnail to view it the photo doesn't resize so all you can see is the corner of the pic.

Thank you Siv,If that happens too often, we need to check if we can set a limit size to the picture attached - that is a possibility if I am not mistaken. I'd consider this a teething problem, but do report any such classifieds you happen to come across, please, so we can help out.Warm regards, Wim

<strong class="bbc">4) WTB forum<br></strong>This is a special case: we will try, for the time being, how this will work with the Classifieds app, meaning that even here images have to be inserted. A post can be made a For Sale or a Wanted (to Buy) post by a simple radio button, but all classifieds require the upload ofat least 1 image. Our suggestion is that if you don't have an image, toupload a (simple) drawing. If this does not work out, we may revert back to the old incarnation of the WTB forum(s). Unfortunately the expected fix for this will only be avialable after the next major upgrade of the board software, and we didn't want to wait that long.

<br>Perhaps I am missing something here. Unless the member already owns an image of the WTB item (unlikely), he should find one on the web he can "borrow" for purposes of meeting the "upload of at least 1 image" requirement? If not, then "a (simple) drawing" will do? Ha! My drawing skills aren't up to any sort of decent representation of any fountain pen that I would purchase. Can you imagine trying to draw a Krone? <br>

Hi Margana,Maybe you could attach a brand name image in that case? I don't particularly think any pen or other company would object to the free advertising thus obtained .Unfortunately it is make do until such time images can be specifed per category.HTH, warm regards, Wim

Hello,We appreciate all the efforts on the new Classifieds. Thank you.A couple of things I'm looking for here and not finding, maybe someone can steer me in the right direction.When I mark a classified as "Watched" where or what is the easiest way to look at all my watched classifieds in one place?When I choose to view the new items in a classified, why isn't there, or if so, where is there a link to mark them all as viewed as it is in the forums itself? (To keep only new ones you want to view or your watched ones)Are we able now to get an RSS feed of the classifieds that we can use in out RSS Readers?Thank you!

Nice job! It makes browsing the ads easier, maybe TOO easy. A question, perhaps I'm being thick--are new WTB ads now part of the FS ads and interspersed with them? Or is there still a separate WTB section (other than the prior subforum)?

Wim, excellent work! I really like this new classifieds thing where you can see pictures of everything for sale at a glance.One small issue - if someone uploads a picture that is large (e.g. 4000x6000 as is typical from a modern multi-megapixel camera) then when you click the thumbnail to view it the photo doesn't resize so all you can see is the corner of the pic.

Thank you Siv,If that happens too often, we need to check if we can set a limit size to the picture attached - that is a possibility if I am not mistaken. I'd consider this a teething problem, but do report any such classifieds you happen to come across, please, so we can help out.Warm regards, Wim

Wim,I have accidentally attached several pictures as part of my new classified ads, then looked at the posted ad (there is no preview) and found that my pix were several times the size of the screen. I quickly went into edit mode, deleted the pix and replaced them with downsized versions. So, this won't show up to you, but it could easily have happened if I had not reviewed each picture after posting the ad.

Wim, excellent work! I really like this new classifieds thing where you can see pictures of everything for sale at a glance.One small issue - if someone uploads a picture that is large (e.g. 4000x6000 as is typical from a modern multi-megapixel camera) then when you click the thumbnail to view it the photo doesn't resize so all you can see is the corner of the pic.

Thank you Siv,If that happens too often, we need to check if we can set a limit size to the picture attached - that is a possibility if I am not mistaken. I'd consider this a teething problem, but do report any such classifieds you happen to come across, please, so we can help out.Warm regards, Wim

Wim,I have accidentally attached several pictures as part of my new classified ads, then looked at the posted ad (there is no preview) and found that my pix were several times the size of the screen. I quickly went into edit mode, deleted the pix and replaced them with downsized versions. So, this won't show up to you, but it could easily have happened if I had not reviewed each picture after posting the ad.

That happens because we haven't set a maximum image size yet for the time being. Rather than have people learn two new things simultaneously, we decided one would be hard enough. Once we're all used to the Classifeds app, we will likely set the limit to 1 MB per image, just like it is in Upload.HTH, warm regards, Wim

Nice job! It makes browsing the ads easier, maybe TOO easy. A question, perhaps I'm being thick--are new WTB ads now part of the FS ads and interspersed with them? Or is there still a separate WTB section (other than the prior subforum)?

The WTB ads are interspersed with the FS ads currently. There is a radio button, which still is part of a default button set, which allows one the choice of "For Sale" and "Wanted". We have requested for this to be changed, together with the option to make it possible for an image to be mandatory on a per category basis, and custom fields selectable per category. Once these are implemented, we will likely set up a separate WTB category, without the image requirement.HTH, warn regards, Wim.

Hello,We appreciate all the efforts on the new Classifieds. Thank you.

Thank you for your kind words.

A couple of things I'm looking for here and not finding, maybe someone can steer me in the right direction.When I mark a classified as "Watched" where or what is the easiest way to look at all my watched classifieds in one place?

There isn't currently. Since there are on average about 30-35 new adverts a day, that shouldn't be a big problem, I would think. You can setup notifications however, from your control panel.

When I choose to view the new items in a classified, why isn't there, or if so, where is there a link to mark them all as viewed as it is in the forums itself? (To keep only new ones you want to view or your watched ones)

It will automatically assume new classifieds since you last visited, whether you viewed them or not. If you have unviewed ones, you can still recognize those from the marker visibility.

Are we able now to get an RSS feed of the classifieds that we can use in out RSS Readers?Thank you!

Unless you set one up yourself, or set up your notifications, no, I am afraid not.HTH, warm regards, Wim